Mr 3 Minutes/ 3 分鐘先生

Mr 3 Minutes is a small fun film. With Ronald Cheng as the leading actor, Mr 3 Minutes is a fun affair, as Cheng shows off his comedic skills once more by playing a slightly off-balance Scott Chung, who runs a bridal parlor. With a personal principle to work hard and play hard, Scott vows to only spend 3 minutes at any single thing. Scenes of these 3 minute meetings convinces the audience of how he operates and the audience is also led to believe that Scott spends every night with a different woman he picks up at some club or bar. When a child suddenly appears claiming to be his son, Scott attempts to operate as he has always done by spending 3 minutes a day with the kid. When his son starts gaining the affections of everyone around Scott, he is forced to question what he is doing wrong. This story is therefore about the relationship of a father and son.

While the recent After This Our Exile attempted to explore a more serious side of the father-son relationship, Mr 3 Minutes takes a lighter approach. With a fairly standard plot, Mr 3 Minutes does nothing to extinguish itself from other comedies. Although having seen this film about a week or so ago, I can already remember little of significance. It is hard to pinpoint the exact details of how the movie failed, but the general execution is certainly lacking. Most of the challenges presented to the characters are very basic and their resolution equally unrealistic. It must be questioned whether this movie truly reveals anything about a father-son relationship that is not already obvious. Ronald Cheng does a good job but is bound too much by his weak character to truly shine. Overall, this film offers no contribution to the comedy genre and should be viewed by those with nothing better on their list who wish to spend some time watching a light-hearted film. Just don't expect to remember it later.

Pros: Some comedic value. Light, if that's your thing.
Cons: Nothing new. Not a memorable film.
Conclusion: A fun little affair that will pass the time.
Score: 2.5/5

Re-cycle/ 鬼域

Re-cycle is one of those movies that are just waiting to be discovered. Starring Angelica Lee, an actress who has grown a loyal following since her excellent performance in The Eye, Re-cycle is a film that, although imperfect, proves to be an enjoyable affair. The Pang brothers have always directed films with flair and Re-cycle is no different. The camera work is sweeping and the tight control of each screen allows good story-telling to be done (whether the story is worth telling is often the real question with these guys).

The plot of Re-cycle involves Lee's character, who is a famous fiction author. While writing her new book about supernatural events surrounding a girl, she inexplicably starts to experience the phenomenon she writes about. Slowly, these events increase in intensity until one day she is sucked into a completely different world, the source of these supernatural events. What she finds on in this other world is unlike anything she's ever encountered. As she strives to leave this strange new place, she begins to learn more about the real world and herself.

Being a thriller at heart, Re-cycle does have some pretty good scares. These all fit inside the context of the plot and so are well-delivered. However, these scenes are not original and the overall cohesion of the film suffers from this use of seemingly regurgitated elements. In addition, the CG effects in the film are hit or miss, with some truly spectacular scenes alongside amateurish attempts. Some parts of the story do not add up, such as the resolution at the end of the film, which I'll leave unrevealed here.

Good horror/thriller films are always good to come by, since they are usual one-time affairs that provide no more than cheap thrills. Re-cycle avoids this characterization for the most part by infusing a deeper storyline. Despite its flaws, Re-cycle is a promising addition to any Asian scary movie collection. This might be just that movie you're looking for.

Pros: Good camera work. Blend of fantasy and reality. Some scary moments.
Cons: Very limited cast. Not original plot.
Conclusion: A solid film that will satisfy even if it does not impress.
Score: 3/5

My Name is Fame/ 我要成名

My Name is Fame is definitely a sleeper hit. Starring veteran Lau Ching Wan and new actress Huo Si Yan, My Name is Fame is starts off with jaded actor Poon Ka Fai, who reached the pinnacle of his career while in his 20s. Although lauded as a wonderful actor who strives for perfection and realism in his work, his attitude with directors and staff are often too direct for his own good. Thus, he is now an actor with little work. But, by chance, he comes upon Nig Hiu Fei, a new actress willing to work hard. Fai becomes attached to the new actress and teaches her his acting techniques. As she becomes more successful, Fai is forced to reflect upon his own career to rediscover why he started on his acting career.

In many ways, My Name is Fame is a powerful critique of the current film industry. The character Fai gives very honest opinions of the problems of the industry, and when Fai's story in the film reflects actor Lau Ching Wan's own career, the film delivers a powerful message. Lau, who has been part of many acclaimed films, has never won a HK Film Award. At times, during the movie, it is hard to separate whether the character or the actor is speaking, as the actor can very well be playing himself. This genuine impression carries a forceful impact, bringing the characters into reality.

Another device that must be applauded is Fai's critiques in the movie of the new actress's acting. As he corrects and demonstrates how good acting should be done, it becomes only more apparent the wonderful acting from the actors themselves in the creation of the film. This gives off a similar feeling to a magician explaining his trick. Learning how the trick is done merely conveys the ingenuity with which the act is performed - in no way does it detract from the trick. When Fai explains various aspects of acting, we appreciate Lau's acting even more.

Pros: Introspective look of film industry, great acting and characters, downplays unnecessary romance
Cons: Only a hint at the ugly side of the industry, some may find the movie overly positive
Conclusion: You will wonder why you have not heard more about this film after you've watched it. It is that good.
Score: 4/5

Borat: Cultural Learnings of America for Make Benefit Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan

Humor is hard to control. What one person find funny might be offensive to another. Thus, it is very difficult to produce a comedy that is critically acclaimed. Just think about when the last time was that a comedy movie won an award. Can't remember? Me neither. This is because most films in the comedy genre turn out to be riddled with either cliche jokes or potty humor more suitable for grade-school kids. A good comedy should point out things that defy common sense that persist and make a point to use humor to bring out some other element of life. That is what the trailer for Borat suggested. I solemnly expected to be entertained while Borat went about pointing out all the bigotry, racism, and other wrongful aspects of American society that exist. I expected an intellecutual direction behind all the jokes. I expected rewatch value.

But that is not what I received. What I received was a brutal destruction of decency. There is nothing funny about being a complete snob. Playing jokes on the random suspecting people could have been funny if there was a point. Instead, it was largely pointless. The context was used as an excuse to perform outrageous, public acts rather than vice versa. Many of the acts bordered on obscene - simply disgusting affairs. It is not that I disagree with the supposed concept behind the movie. I love the TV show "House", wherein the main character acts like a complete ass and breaks all the rules. But if it was just a random doctor it would not be worth watching. The seller is that House is always right. That is the social doctrine he follows. He is a good doctor. Borat can make no such claim. He breaks the rules for no reason, toward no end, to serve no purpose. He is not right. He just likes being obscene, as if that was enough in of itself. It is not. It is great that such things as Borat is allowed to exist under free speech. It certainly pushes some boundaries. However, in this society, people should have better sense than to produce something like Borat. Just because something is allowed doesn't mean it should be done. Especially in this case.

Pros: It makes the time go away if there's absolutely nothing else to watch.
Cons: Low budget look. Obscene. No rewatch value. Things that are just wrong.
Conclusion: Gives a few good laughs, but is that really enough?
Score: 1/5

Heavenly Mission/ 天行者

Although some of you may not be familiar with it, it is not possible to talk about Heavenly Mission without mentioning the infamous Young and Dangerous series popular in the '90s. About the rise of several youngsters from schoolyard kids to triad bosses, Young and Dangerous was a captivating adventure about brotherhood and honor in the triad world. For many, that was the triad genre's best moments. Even though Heavenly Mission is not an official end to the Young and Dangerous series, it can very well be - it stars Ekin Cheng as the main character, who returns from an 8-year sentence in a Thai prison. In fact, other than the character name, Ekin Cheng is essentially playing the same role as before.

After returning to Hong Kong, Cheng's character attempts to go down the "right" path. But he is not naive. He knows the cops will be watching. Thus, he approaches cautiously, outmanuvering the special task force out to arrest him for any small mistake. In fact, Cheng's character is wonderful as it takes the police, as well as the audience, on his bid to change the world for the better. This is done so well that, at times, the police appear to be the bad guys as it hinders this powerful force of good. What I find perplexing is that at one point, Cheng says he wants to return to HK because he wants to find out something. This can be interpreted in a multitude of ways and it is seemingly forgotten by the end of the movie. Another complaint is that it ends in a very standardized fashion. It does the job, but it comes at no surprise.

There are no wasted scenes in this film. Every section advances the film in some small way and allows the whole thing to come together. It does ask the audience to pay attention, just enough to play some neat twists and tricks in the plot. Being more involved in the plot only increases the satisfaction level of the movie, making this a very enjoyable film.

Pros: Easy to connect to main character, good plot
Cons: Somewhat generic ending, slight loopholes in the story
Conclusion: Recommended. For fans of Young and Dangerous, a must watch!
Score: 3.5/5

Exiled/ 放．逐

Exiled is the latest Johnnie To movie. After Election, which I was disappointed with, contrary to popular opinion, I was pleasantly surprised to see that this director was back to making awesome movies. For those unfamiliar with his work, I highly recommend watching his past works if the chance ever presents itself.

Exiled is a story of the strength of brotherhood in the realm of jiang hu, the implicit rules and regulations that govern the world of triads. Nick Cheung plays an ex-triad who returns to Macau to settle down. Two of his old buddies have been ordered to assassinate him, while two other buddies have come to his aid. In this strange stand-off, the five "brothers" enjoy their time together before getting down to business. Cheung's character asks everyone to help him do one "job" to raise money for his wife and kid before the shooting begins, and the gang agrees. Thus, this strange journey of the brothers begins. One thing of note is the cameo appearance by Richie Ren. He appears as a police seargeant with a sniper rifle. In short, he looks awesome. It is certainly good to see him on screen, where he has been absent for a long time.

Action sequences occur very infrequently but when they appear, they are very stylishly done. The gun fights take on a fantastic feel that borders on the ridiculous but feels fitting to the overall movie. The action is always covered from multiple angles, which are striped together into very coherent sequences. The bond between the main characters is portrayed very deeply and all the side characters have more than paper-thin personality. The pace of the movie is controlled very well, with sweeping camera work at the right time to capture the feeling of the current scene. Overall, the directing is excellent.

It has been about a week of so since I watched Exiled, and the above is what stands out most in my mind. However, I can clearly remember the disappointed feeling I had immediately at the conclusion of the film. I can most readily narrow this down to the ending, which ended fairly abruptly in a shoot-out which was somewhat entertaining - except for the fact that it ended the plot. There is more potential that could have been realized in the plot, so that makes the ending even less satisfying. Another lesser point is that the entire story takes place amidst the last day before Macau's control back to China. This portion was not conveyed well and the sense of urgency of some of the characters to wrap up business before the new "era" is thus not apparent, when it should have been.

Pros: Good cast, stylized action, stays true to subject matter
Cons: Not enough action. No new innovation to the genre
Conclusion: If not for the ending, this would get one-half to one point higher!
Score: 3/5

Check out this alternate poster in French!

Wo Hu/ 臥虎

Every year, the HK film industry is bound to produce a few films about triads. Although I personally do not mind the genre, I do grow tired of mediocre films that simply regurgitate cliche elements. In this post-Infernal Affairs world, Wo Hu plays it safe by using some parts in IA and yet introduces some interesting ideas about the triad genre.

The story begins as the police starts a prolonged operation against local triads by sending in 1,000 undercover cops. However, this is more of a gimmick as at no point do 1,000 undercover cops appear. The rest of the plot is about the cops moving against a certain triad organization and how the organization reacts internally. Right off, three main triad bosses are played by veterans in this genre, Eric Tsang, Francis Ng, and Jordan Chan. The film tries to give these bosses depth - Eric Tsang encounters a love interest, Francis Ng tries to be a good father, and Jordan Chan is scared of his wife. The problem here is not that these characters are more than triad members; the problem is that these characters aren't very good triad members. It is ludicrous that despite repeated claims by the cops of the magnitude of the triad organization, there are never many extras on screen. These bosses often walk around with no bodyguards and no weapons at hand, and when, at one point, Jordan Chan's character is asked to supply 50 henchmen but he can gather only 30-something, I seriously question the power of this organization.

At various points, the film throws around some moral issues such as good vs evil and right vs wrong, to which it largely answers by the end. But the movie does not appear intent on spreading a certain message. In addition, most of the scenes do not appear to be significant to the progress of the plot, giving a slow, calm feel. Overall, despite its flaws, Wo Hu is a decent triad flick that fans of the genre would enjoy.

Pros: Strong leading cast, interesting twist
Cons: Not enough extras, fairly generic story
Conclusion: Mildly recommended, but not a good place to delve into the triad genre.
Score: 2.5/5

Bon Cop, Bad Cop

Bon Cop, Bad Cop is one of the stranger movies I have seen. The basic premise is that a hockey-crazed fan is murdering people trying to move Canadian hockey teams out of Canada. Two cops, one from Quebec and one from Ontario, are now working together as partners. The movie gets only better from the ridiculous premise. Both cops are bilingual in both French and English, and, depending on which province they are in, they will converse back and forth in both languages. Even though I do not understand a word of French, I enjoyed the subtitles at those parts.

This movie reminds me greatly of the Rush Hour series, where two cops of different language backgrounds pair up. Similar to Rush Hour, the movie does not take itself seriously, which adds greatly to the humor. The actors make fun of everything, making up for the rather bland plot and its execution. There are a lot of parallel moments, where one thing would happen to one cop and then in the next moment to the other.

Bon Cop, Bad Cop is an experiment in mixing languages, and it is largely a success. Looking back at the movie now, however, I can see areas where the film could have used more polish. There are no large, elaborate sets or extended action sequences other than largely mundane fist fights. The color throughout the movie seems to be rather faded, where some more post-processing would surely have helped. Although I found this movie highly entertaining, I can see how someone might disagree.

There is no message in Bon Cop, Bad Cop. It is simply meant to be a fun experience. With the unique fusion of languages, Bon Cop, Bad Cop is a movie I recommend to anyone seeking a different brand of humor.

Pros: Innovative mixture of English and French, a unique take on humor
Cons: Could have used a bigger budget, generic story
Conslusion: If you are tired of cliche humor, this is the movie for you.
Score: 3.5/5

A Battle of Wits/ 墨攻

It's great to be able to start off with a good movie. Starting off with some background, A Battle of Wits is a joint venture from Chinese, Korean, and Japanese funding. The announced budget for the movie was $16 million, putting it alongside other recent big-budgeted Chinese films. Considering that Mission Impossible III had a budget of $110 million and King Kong had a budget of $207 million, A Battle of Wits is a rather impressive achievement.

A Battle of Wits is set in the Warring States era, when China was split into many small countries. When a small city-state of 4000 troops is threatened by a force of 100,000 troops, one man (played by Andy Lau), a follower of the teachings of Mozi answers the call to defend the city. However, this is not a fairy tale. Jealousy sets in soon after the city fends off the first wave of attacks. The film attempts to provoke thoughts about life and war through careful pacing of the movie, with bits of action interspersed by seemingly-natural dialogue from the characters. In this area, this movie is a complete success, as ultimately, even while set in a setting of war and chaos, this is an anti-war movie.

Released during a period of intense competition from other films set in ancient China, The Banquet and Curse of the Golden Flower, A Battle of Wits wins hands down. Rather than going for the tired approach of showing off some wonderful vistas in the backdrop, A Battle of Wits attempts to depict the reality of war - but not through gore. Instead, the entire movie is literally various shades of grey and brown. There are no vivid colors to be found here.

The acting in the movie is hit-and-miss. Andy Lau and Sung-kee Ahn (Ahn's involvement points to his earlier film, Musa, as a definite inspiration to this film) are definite veterans of the stage and it shows, although nothing noteworthy comes to mind. Other performers could use more polish, although nothing faulty stands out either. One gripe I have with the movie is the editing, which is bad for a "big-budgeted" movie. Scene transitions are awful, with disorienting fade-outs and fade-ins. There is one short scene in which I could see nothing as well as other scenes that seem shortened. I sincerely hope a Director's Cut comes out soon. Another area I found surprising was the lack of a strong soundtrack. I have come to expect soundtracks such as that in Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon or that in The Myth, but in A Battle of Wits, there is hardly any music at any point of the movie, which I believe would have helped to enhance the picture on screen.

Even though there are problem areas, A Battle of Wits is a very good effort. Its philosophical message is evident at its conclusion, and, similar to Hero, I believe the film requires more than one pass to fully grasp its meaning. I strongly recommend A Battle of Wits to anyone seeking more than mindless action.

Pros: Good plot, strong leading actors, thought-provoking, believable depiction of ancient China

Cons: Bad editing, lack of soundtrack, amateurish acting in some parts

Conclusion: Watch this!

Final score: 4/5

Enjoy this movie's awesome accompanying posters:

(The actors in the last five images are: Si Won Choi, Sung-kee Ahn, Nicky Wu, Bingbing Fan, and Andy Lau)

Here we go!

On a recent car trip I realized that I consume an amazing amount of movies/tv/games. So much that I get them confused. In hopes of getting them straight in my head, and partly also because my friend Roy is doing such a great job at it, I'm going to start jotting little reviews. Hopefully if someone has some valuable time to spend on entertainment these little reviews can help him/her choose the appropriate poison.

After deciding on what I want to do, it becomes necessary to choose an appropriate rating system. A 100-point system runs the risk of being compared to a standard grading scale where bad-decent-excellent can really be expressed within the 50-100 point range. Dropping that idea quickly, next is the 5 and 10 point systems. A 10 point system is very similar to the 100 point system. Even with half-point increments, there appear to be too many levels that it would take an insane amount of time for me to properly assign a value to something. However, a scale of 10 integer values seem too strict. It's a close call, but I will go with a 5 point system with half-point increments. This is similar to the 10 point integer-only scale, except due to the smaller values, it feels more comfortable. In addition, the maximum value in a 5 point system is not closed for use as would be the case in a 10 or 100-point system, where the highest value is reserved "something better that might come along sometime in the future".